Residency at Kylemore Abbey
Deadline: July 11, 2013
Application fee: none
Set in the spectacular environs of Connemara at the Kylemore Abbey the intensive 10-day residency of painting and drawing is led by internationally renowned artists and critics from Europe and the US. Founded by painter Denis Farrell as an alternative to traditional academic pressures, Lodestar is a place where willingness to fail is a triumph and to take a chance on something is key to crossing the Rubicon. Lodestar focuses on making, discussion and reflection combined with group and one-on-one critique, workshops and studio visits.
http://lodestarschoolofart.com/
We welcome artists who have ambition for their painting and who are willing to take the creative risks necessary to develop their work.
Artists who seek critical input on a body of work to serve as a portfolio for application to graduate programs.
Artists who seek rigorous and intensive exchange concerning both studio work and critical thinking in a creative, professional environment.
Lodestar | Summer 2014 focuses on painting and drawing.
Participating artists will be immersed in making, discussion and reflection combined with critical dialogue, structured around:
Group Critiques
Individual One-on-One Critiques
Workshops
Talks from Guest Artists
Studio Visits
Evening Events and Excursions to include Irish Film Screenings, Dance, Poetry, Music and Performance
Closing Exhibition and Dinner
About Kylemore Abbey
Lodestar | Summer 2014 is situated at Kylemore Abbey in the heart of Connemara, Ireland. The Castle was built as a private home for the family of Mitchell and Margaret Henry from 1867 to 1871. Before the arrival of the Henrys, Connemara was already a popular destination for hunting and fishing in the West of Ireland.
The castle covered approximately 40,000 square feet (3,700 m2) with over 70 rooms and the principal wall was two to three feet thick. The facade measured 142 feet (43 m) in length and is made of granite brought from Dalkey by sea to Letterfrack and limestone from Ballinasloe. There were 33 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 4 sitting rooms, ballroom, billiard room, library, study, school room, smoking room, gun room and various offices and domestic staff residences for the butler, cook, housekeeper and other servants. Several other buildings include a Gothic cathedral and family mausoleum containing the bodies of Margaret Henry, Mitchell Henry and a great grand nephew.
Kylemore Abbey is now home to a community of nuns of the Benedictine Order who came here in 1920 after their abbey in Ypres, Belgium was destroyed in World War I. Settling at Kylemore, the Benedictine Community opened a world renowned boarding school for girls and began restoring the Abbey, Gothic Church and Victorian Walled Garden to their former glory. Visitors are welcome to discover the magic, beauty and peacefulness of Kylemore Abbey, back-dropped by the rugged majesty of Connemara.
The Facilities
In Kylemore Abbey’s education wing there are openly shared studio spaces and classrooms. The main castle offers reception rooms, a former chapel as exhibition space, plus six acres of walled garden and many, many acres of wooded lakeland.
There are two cafés and a tea room next to the walled garden. Lodestar Residents will receive vouchers for the cafés for a mid-day a meal and dinner will be specially provided for the group (dinner will include vegetarian, gluten-free and dairy-free options). Non- Resident artists may purchase meals at the cafés or Tea Room, and are welcome to bring their own snacks/packed lunches.
The co-ed dormitory is partitioned as cubicles and accommodates 25 students, with adjacent shared toilets and showers. Single or double private rooms are available at an extra fee (please enquire). There are nearby B&Bs in Letterfrack and Clifden, however, personal/rented transportation would be required to travel to and from Kylemore and up to the individual to arrange.
